native plants

Once you learn about non-native invasive plants they seem to be everywhere! One of the worst of these—Ailanthus altissima—has the misleading common name “Tree of Heaven.” Introduced as an ornamental, Ailanthus is an attractive, fast-growing tree—but when cut back it can sprout up more than 10 feet a year! Water and wind can spread seeds that will grow new trees as tall as 6 feet their first year.

Ailanthus trees produce a lot of pollen and all parts of the tree can produce skin irritation in some individuals. If that doesn’t give you pause, we now have a new reason to double down on eliminating this invader: it is the preferred host tree for an exceedingly destructive insect, the spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula), which may be making its way south! Removing Ailanthus now will make North Carolina less hospitable to this planthopper, which is a major pest of many fruits, including apples and grapes.

Adult Male Lanternfly

How to know if you have tree of heaven?

Characteristics to look for:

Bark: Smooth bark that looks somewhat like cantaloupe skin.

Ailanthus Bark

Leaves: Each leaf has from 10 to 40 leaflets with smooth edges, except for 1 to 2 “teeth” at the bottom of each leaflet. Leaves have a very strong peanut-butter odor.

Aialnthus Leaves

Flowers: Yellowish flowers April through June.

Ailanthus in Bloom

Seeds: Winged seed pods in large clusters that may stay on the trees in winter.

Ailanthus seed Pods

Management

Tree of heaven is difficult to control because of its extensive root system and re-sprouting ability. Success depends on treatment timing and following up the next year. Be sure to wear gloves and other protective clothing when removing tree of heaven because of the possibility of allergic reactions.

Mechanical

Hand-pull young seedlings as soon as they are large enough to grasp. They are best pulled after a rain loosens the soil.

Remove the entire root because small root fragments are capable of generating new shoots.

Note that root suckers are easily confused with seedlings and are nearly impossible to pull by hand.

Although cutting down a tree of heaven will cause it to re-sprout and sucker, you may want to prune out limbs during the winter after leaf fall.

If seed clusters are present on cut limbs, collect, bag, and dispose of in heavy trash bags so they will not sprout have a chance to sprout.

Chemical

Herbicides containing the active ingredient triclopyr are effective. Apply all chemical treatments between July 1 and when the tree begins to show fall colors.

When removing a tree of heaven, use foliar herbicide sprays where tree height and distribution allow effective coverage without unacceptable contact with nearby desirable plants.

Treat the foliage with an herbicide first, allow 30 days for it to take effect before cutting the tree down.

Including wildflowers in the home garden adds beauty, brings surprise, attracts pollinators, and creates a natural looking, informal landscape. If you select a location to match their natural growing conditions— sun/shade, wet/dry, open area/woodland, and elevation—wildflowers easily co-exist with typical garden plantings and require little maintenance.

Wildflower Garden

Where to get wildflowersStart wildflowers from purchased seeds, or divisions, stem or root cuttings from friends. It is often illegal to dig wildflowers from the wild because of concerns about depleting natural populations! Purchase plants only from reputable nurseries that do not collect stock from the wild and label their plants “100% nursery propagated.”

Choosing wildflowers for your gardenSome wildflowers are fairly easy to establish. These include showy perennials such as:

Many of these are available at local and mail-order nurseries, but not all species will be native to our area and many will be hybridized, or cultivars selected because they are unusual or showier.

If you enjoy including self-seeding plants in your garden, some shorter-lived Coreopsis and Rudbeckia species, as well as columbine (Aquilegia canadensis), blazing star (Liatris spicate), cardinal flowers (Lobelia cardinalis), and bird’s foot violet (Viola pedata) will persist and often spread in your garden through reseeding.

Low-growing wildflowers can make attractive groundcovers, too. Partridgeberry (Mitchella repens) has tiny white flowers followed by bright red berries that stand out against evergreen leaves.

Partridge Berry (Mitchella repens)

Other wildflowers, like lady slipper orchids, are much more difficult to propagate and/or transplant and are best admired in their natural habitats!

I’m amazed at the quantity and variety of wildflowers I’ve seen since moving to Western North Carolina ten years ago! It has become a game to see how many different kinds I can find . . . and remember. Because of the hundreds of wildflower species in our region, I’ll leave it up to you to acquire reference books and field guides, apps, and to search websites. To get you started, here are a few of the most common—and most interesting—wildflowers that I’ve seen that you’re likely to discover, too.

• Wood anemone (Anemone quinquefolia). The flower “petals” are sepals colored white or pink. Wood anemones and the rue anemones (Thalictrum thalictroides[= Anemonella thalictroides]) are very similar, differing in the shape of their leaves and positioning of blossoms on their stems. Rue anemones are sometimes called windflower, because they produce little nectar, but lots of wind-blown pollen.
Habitat: Rich humus soil; open woods and thickets

Wood Anemone

Spring perennials found in a wide range of elevations
• Fire pink (Silene virginica). This wildflower’s scarlet-red five-petal blossoms—atop slender stems with narrow opposite leave—“pink” refers to the notched petals—“pinked” at their tips. Fire pink is at home on harsh, dry, rocky slopes, although it will grow in well-drained, moist soils and partial shade. Pollinators and hummingbirds love it. Songbirds eat the seeds.
Habitat: Dry, rocky slopes

Summer perennials
• Cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis). Like North Carolina’s state bird, the wildflower is named for its resemblance to Roman Catholic cardinals’ clothing. Growing 3-5 feet tall, with erect flower spikes atop each stem, cardinal flowers open from the bottom of the spike to the top.
Habitat: Banks of streams; moist meadows and thickets; full sun to part shade
Elevation: Low to mid-range

Fall perennials
• Crane-fly orchid (Tipularia discolor). When this orchid blooms in late summer, with tiny whitish-brown blossoms along a 15-inch stalk, it has no leaves—but its distinctive, low-growing leaves emerge in autumn and persist until spring. Somewhat crinkly looking, their upper side is dull to shiny green, the underside is purple.
Habitat: Rich forest soils along slopes and streams
Elevation: Low to mid-range

Unusual wildflowers
• Lady slipper (Cypripedium spp.). Discover this pink or yellow orchid, and you’ve found a jewel. The inch-long blossom looks like an inflated pouch or soft lady’s slipper. The pink lady slipper flowers on a stalk sitting above two large basal leaves. The yellow lady slipper has 3 to 5 leaves along the stalk. Their dust-like seeds require the right soil fungi to germinate. Never try to dig and transplant lady slippers! Enjoy them in their natural habitat.
Bloom time: April-June
Habitat: Dry to moist woods
Elevation: Low to mid-range

Lady Slipper

• Jack-in-the-pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum). You have to look carefully to see the flower that pops up at the node of one or two leaves, each divided into three leaflets. Look for the hooded pulpit and Jack (or Jill!) standing inside. That’s right, this wildflower can produce male or female flowers, depending on the amount of resources stored in its corm (underground stem). The pulpit can be green, brownish-purple, striped, or mottled. If the plant produces a female flower, red berries appear in late summer when both Jill—and the pulpit—are gone!
Bloom time: March-June
Habitat: Moist woods; along creeks
Elevation: Wide range

Learn more
NC State Extension Plants
Photographs and searchable lists of wildflowers by common and scientific names.
https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/category/wildflowers/4/?category=wildflowers&s=common_name

North Carolina Native Plant Society
Photographs and searchable lists of wildflowers by common and scientific names.
https://ncwildflower.org/search/results/1c9da2083d71b05c3799f539f48d2a5c/

Wildflowers of the United States
References, photographs, and searchable lists by state.
https://uswildflowers.com/stateref.php?State=NC